This just in...

BST, Basic Safety Training begins on April 20th in Ft Lauderdale, Florida.

"The Standards of Training Certification & Watchkeeping Code requires any new mariner take this 5-day course of instruction. This is comprised of four main courses: basic firefighting, personal survival, personal safety and social responsibility, and elementary first aid."

... Looks like i'm headin down south!

Hittin' the High Seas!

As my previous post would suggest, i've recently accepted A NEW JOB!!

In April, I set sail for my first four month stint as Pastry Sous Chef aboard the floating city, "The World." Now, to be perfectly honest, before Anthony Bourdain's account of the boat in his most-recent book The Nasty Bits I had no idea that this boat even existed! However, a few weeks ago (for some bizarre reason) I was suddenly hit with a bolt of inspiration to read up on it, and inquire about any available positions. As luck would have it, they happen to be looking for someone and after a few interviews, I found an offer in my inbox. =)

Ok, so what exactly is this "The World" ?? Essentially, it's a monster floating city complete with around 200 condos, 4 restaurants, a casino, a theater, a full-sized tennis court, a pool, a work-out facility, a library, a spa, and a helipad (for easy "just jet on by" access). Residences range in price from $2 - 7.5 million, and (for a ship that's big enough to fit around 1500 people) there's only around 300 guests on board at a time.

Not gunna lie, this is definitely an unusual experience, and for a ton of reasons, something I'm REALLY excited about. When I got home from Italy, I wasn't sure exactly what would become of this blog, but with this experience on the horizon I'd be stupid to let it go. Another expat job means being miles and miles from the comforts of New York, the family in Baltimore, and friends spread all over the world. With the blog, I'll be able to stay connected and keep you all updated with pics & stories from all over.

OH, and with that in mind, my first stint starts in Chile and should drop me off somewhere in Alaska in August.

Should be fun!!!!

Ciao!

Shiny & New

...thought the blog could use a fresh coat of paint, a new logo, and a new layout. Perhaps that's because it's being resurrected in preparation of the new job i just accepted. (!!!!)

More to follow... =)

When life gives you lemons, make Lemon Ganache...

For more than a few weeks now I've been "beatin' the pavement" as my dad would say, lookin' for a job. Unfortunately though, finding a good job is about as hard as finding an intelligent sentence in a Palin interview. That being true, I've taken this abundance of free time and put it to good use. You see, since going to culinary school, I've developed a dorky obsession with chocolates and confections. From well made, classic confections, to cutting edge (and mostly bizarre) candies, I'm totally fascinated and captivated by the methods by which they're made. That being said, this "limbo" time has afforded me the awesome opportunity to develop some candies at home. Now, much like any concept, one must first work within the "safe" realm before he/she can venture into unknown territory. So, without further adue, I've decided to "Go My Own Way" so to speak, and I give you a simple box of chocolates of my construction:

Chocolate Production - Home

Now that the preverbal band-aid has been torn off and production has begun, the more unusual ideas have started flowing. With that, I've ordered some funky ingredients and will be experimenting with them this week. I'll have to keep you in suspense as to what they are, but I will say this: They aren't flavors.

Weird huh? If I can get these ideas to work, I'll have some VERY unique candies to distribute. ;)

Guess you'll just have to stay tuned!

Ciao!

A new day...

Made it to the inauguration and it was freakin crazy!!  The sea of heads all the way to the capitol was an amazing sight, and I'm SO glad I was convinced (last-minute) to go. =)  One of my companions already posted a few pics on facebook, so check those out while I start compiling my pics of the day. =)

So, how about a little look ahead to 2012?? 

Who wouldn't vote for THAT face?? =P

Memories... (6,000 photos later)

As I skim through all 6,000 (yes, i said SIX THOUSAND) of the pictures I took while I lived in Italy I've begun to compile them into small snippets of great moments throughout my trip.  Starting backwards, here's one that I hope will forever be too hard to forget:

The fresh-pressing of the olives grown on our property:

Italia - Olive Oil Pressing

... that's some serious inspiration right there =) 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Yessir, it's that time of year again.... or should i say, that time of NEW year.

Aaaaaaaanywho, just wanted to say to everyone that i'll be in NYC for the next week lookin' for jobs again. Unfortunately, this endeavor's really gotta have a foreseeable end, otherwise it's back to Baltimore for a temporary work solution.   Oh man, this week's gunna be a mad house.  Not gunna lie, I'm too damn stubborn to let this week slip between my fingers.

For those of you in the NYC area, gimme a buzz. My time's short, but it's tough to pass up on grabbin coffe between interviews.

Wish me luck!!!

p.s. check out what my sis got me for Hannukah:

AWESOME!!!